Republic Records president Charlie Walk put on leave following sexual misconduct allegations

Republic Records president Charlie Walk has been put on leave following sexual misconduct allegations made against him by Tristian Coopersmith who worked with Walk at Columbia records in the mid-'00s. "Republic Records is committed to a safe workplace environment where employees are treated fairly and respectfully," the company said in a statement. "We have retained an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation of this matter and have encouraged anyone who has relevant information to speak to the firm’s investigators. Mr. Walk has been placed on leave, and will remain in leave for the duration of the investigation."

Walk will also not appear on the season finale of FOX singing competition series The Four, where he has been a judge (alongside Sean Combs, DJ Khaled and Meghan Trainor), but he will be on tonight's episode (2/1) which had already been taped. "Out of respect for the contestants, my fellow judges and everyone involved with the show, I have made the decision not to attend the finale of The Four," Walk said in a statement given to Variety. “I do not want my presence to be a distraction. Needless to say this is very upsetting. Although I continue to support the ‘Me Too’ movement, there has been an extreme rush to judgment against me in this particular case which is unfair and inconsistent with anything that even actually happened. I welcome any investigation so that in short order these unfounded and hurtful accusations can be put to rest."

Coopersmith, who is now a licensed psychotherapist, made the allegations in an open letter on the website of her company Life Lab where she writes of being a 27-year-old getting her first big break in the music business working for Walk at Columbia. "You gave me opportunities beyond my wildest imagination....But you also made me feel sick to my stomach almost everyday. For a year I shuddered at the idea of being called into your office, where you would stealthily close the door and make lewd comments about my body and share your fantasies of having sex with me."

Coopersmith goes on detail more of what she says she experienced with Walk, from inappropriate instant message exchanges, to this encounter: "there was that event at your swank pad when you actually cornered me and pushed me into your bedroom and onto your bed. The bed you shared with your wife… your wife who was in the room next door. You being drunk and me being 6 inches taller was my saving grace."

Deadline reported that a second woman, who used to work with Walk at Universal, came forward after Coopersmith's open letter. Meanwhile, more people shared stories and opinions -- anonymously and on the record as well as pro and con -- about Walk in a "Mailbag" edition of Bob Lefsetz's "Lefsetz Letter" sent to his mailing list.